Name: ? ないな原酒2015 ?Naina Genshu 2015
Type: 芋・米焼酎 Potato shōchū
Potato: さつま芋 Sweet Potato
Ingredients: さつま芋・米・米麹(国産米) Sweet Potato, Rice, Rice Koji
Alcohol: 38~39%
Distillery: 明石酒造 Akashi Shuzo
Address: 461-1 Kurishita, Ebino City, Miyazaki 889-4221
Website: https://www.meigetsu.co.jp/naina/
Additional Content: The Akashi distillery has a nice youtube video talking about their 130 year history and how they produce their shōchū, unfortunately it is only in Japanese but still interesting to watch.
About ?Naina Genshu 2015 (Distiller Website)
The contents are undiluted sake finished with an exquisite blend of potato shochu and rice shochu. It is bottled as it is without adding any water. How to drink, taste the blend unique to unblended whiskey as it is "straight", or slowly enjoy the sweetness of the potato and the splendor of the rice. "On the Rocks" is recommended.
Enjoy on the rocks
In the bottle: There is a really subtle sweetness with hints of vanilla, caramel and toasted rice, overall very mild. Remarkably, for something with 38-39% alcohol there is surprisingly little alcohol on the nose and not much lingers or stands out too strongly.
On the rocks: It drinks so smooth despite the high alcohol content and the sweetness which starts out right up front, quickly mellows leaving a nice finish that stays with you in a good way, making those vanilla, caramell, toasted rice notes something to savor. The finish does have a sharpness that lingers at the back of the throat but not in an off-putting way, definitely a product of the high alcohol content.
水割り Diluted with water
4:1, 3:2 ratio: At these ratios, ?Naina 2015 really opens up, with the sweetness filling up the palate allowing those deeper notes to shine which remind me more of brown sugar (黒糖) than caramel. The sharpness remains on the finish but it is much more subtle and when you breath out it has a candy vanilla finish, reminds me of vanilla Tootsie rolls.
Reflections on this shōchū
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Akashi Shuzo knocks it out of the park again, amazing shōchū, top quality presentation and packaging, this is the type of gift you give (or buy for yourself) with confidence.
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I have had more than a few special editions or premium selections, but honestly, none have compared to this 2015 release. This was so good, I had no issue shelling out another 3500 JPY for another bottle to keep on the shelf.
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At 38~39% alcohol you need to be careful, it drinks so smooth on the rocks that it is easy to forget the higher alcohol content.
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I am open to anything Akashi Shuzo puts out, everything I have had from them has been amazing. Hopefully I will pick up a few new bottles from their online store soon.
How I came across this bottle:
I am always surprised at what I can find at my local bottle shop, which periodically gets some pretty interesting and rare bottles (it is one of the few places you can still get a bottle of Yamazaki 12 year). So when I saw this at the top shelf, I was instantly sold based on the other bottles of ?Naina I have tried, even at the premium price of 3500 JPY. I have yet to see this at any of the other shops I frequent so it seems like a truly limited release, so I am glad I went back for a second bottle.
Bottle label and Information
Front Label
2015？ないな
2015 ?Naina
Tag Label
Delicate aroma and light mouthfeel born from a blend of potato and rice.
Naina Genshu
This authentic shochu is made from Kogane Sengan rice grown by contracted farmers and rice with reduced pesticides and is brewed with high-quality, clear underground water that flows underground from the virgin forests of the Ebino Plateau. It has a gentle taste that is slightly different from ordinary potato shochu. The delicate and fragrant sweet potato aroma rises slightly, followed by the refreshing sweetness of the rice. Because of its excellent balance, it has a light mouthfeel. The recommended ways to drink it are “Nama” (straight), where you can taste the original sake itself, and on the rocks, where you can slowly enjoy the sweetness of the potato and the gorgeousness of the rice. Please try it.
"Naina" means "What is it?" in the Miyazaki dialect.